The Effect of a Kernel Sentence Combining Technique on the Reading Comprehension Levels of Basic English Students at UPR-Cayey

Abstract


 
 
 In Puerto Rico English is taught as a second language (ESL), and it is a compulsory subject from the elementary level all the way up to high school graduation, yet many college freshmen are classified as low English proficient (LEP), as evidenced by the results in their College Entrance and Examination Boards (CEEB).The purpose of this study was to investigate and analyze how the implementation of the Kernel-Sentence-Combining Technique (the treatment) helped Basic English students at UPR-Cayey to improve their reading comprehension levels. The participants were 44 first year students enrolled in Basic English (INGL 3101-02). There was an experimental (26 participants) as well as a control group (18 participants), the experimental group received a six-week treatment with the kernel-sentence-combining technique. The data were gathered with an instrument that included: a self-made reading comprehension test, a self-made maze-cloze test, and a self-made language proficiency test. The study followed a quantitative approach applying descriptive statistics to the data. The findings include that the Kernel-Sentence-Combining Technique helps students to improve their reading comprehension levels, and that the maze-cloze test is a better measuring instrument for assessing reading comprehension levels in ESL students.